


A heaven before Heaven

by WoeyLeaf



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4 Arena Ultimax - Fandom, Persona Series
Genre: Aikoto Week 2020, Day 3, F/M, Prompt Fill, Reunions, Tumblr Prompt, hand holding, quick prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:41:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25331080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WoeyLeaf/pseuds/WoeyLeaf
Summary: Aikoto Week 2020- Day 3: ReunionsAigis finds herself in a field of sunflowers.
Relationships: Aigis & Arisato Minato, Aigis/Arisato Minato, Aigis/Persona 3 Protagonist
Comments: 3
Kudos: 28
Collections: Makoto/Minato & Aigis Week, Quote Prompt Memes





	A heaven before Heaven

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [quoteonlyprompts](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/quoteonlyprompts) collection. 



Her gears struggled to whirl as she desperately tried to clamber up off the floor grappling anything to pull herself in a last desperate attempt to stand. Her metal soles slipped against the hard cold floor and it wasn't long before she finally collapsed back harshly onto her knees, if it wasn't for the fact that she wasn't human she was sure they would have bruised significantly. The last attack did too much damage and whatever strength she had left was purely gone. Orgia Mode just took too much.

Her mind was blurry, and so too her vision.

After the events of her sister Labrys a thick red fog had followed soon after causing its own form of the Dark Hour and they were attacked by fake shadow versions of themselves. It's where they met back up with the unofficial Investigation Team from the unknown town of Inaba to confront the red-haired man who was responsible for not only recreating the hour of shadows but the kidnapping of her older sister.

And when she saw her sister being hijacked in front of her and knowing there was nothing she could do to fight it, the way it took over her body just like that- it brought back so many bad memories to say the least...

They thought that when they had cornered him that it was all over: but it was far from over. It had happened almost in an instant. An unknown entity took over him and they all were attacked. It was strong to say the least, incredibly strong and without the help of the wildcard powers they were easily wiped to their feet. It didn't help that they were taken by surprise.

The man, or entity had approached her more closely now. To see Aigis's face more clearly. It looked around before it's eyes finally moved away from the group and rested on her. It spouted ones usual monologue, about its goal in order to restore its body and most importantly to destroy the world: about how it was now nearly successful and the world was to end in less than an hour.

How many times has it been now that she had laid broken and completely useless when people needed her the most? She had learnt over the years to not blame herself for her short comings but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt any less.

She tried to pull herself back onto her elbows but she could barely even lift her head. She fought tougher beings before- they had fought tougher things before, gone though so much to protect mankind. So why? Why now was they falling though? How did it get so easily though their defences that they had spent a long time to perfect?

Was this really supposed to be the end after everything that has happened..?

She couldn't think anymore, her head slumped back down on the ground. Her energy was finally gone.

.

.

.

Light.

And the smell of flowers.

It was bright, too bright.

And yet it didn't hurt her eyes.

Was her eyes open or were they closed? She couldn't tell but eventually her eyes focused and she was given the ability to see around her. But there really wasn't much to see, in fact there wasn't anything to see except an empty abyss of of white light. There was no ground and yet she was able to stand firmly on her legs.

Even though there was nothing something inside of her told her to walk forward.

She didn't know where she was going. She couldn't even remember what she was doing or why she was here. How did she get here? Where was even 'here'..?

There was no sound or colour. No voices or people. No objects or shadows. It was completely and utterly quiet.

At first there was nothing; then there was something.

It was something small and yellow in colour which laid ahead of her, and so that's where she went.

It became clearer and began to have more clarity the further she neared towards it. It became larger and less blurry and soon she could make out an outline of it. Eventually when she was near enough she stood in front of it and kneeled to inspect what this yellow thing was that by instinct told her to go to.

It was a sunflower.

It was small but none the less impressive or as beautiful. It was a strange but beautiful flower that she had always adored. She never knew much about flowers because it was never necessary information for fighting shadows so it was never put into her programming, but after learning much about humans she became drawn to them along with many other things that fascinate humans in the attempt that one day she will be truly able to understand them. But as her human companions had always said to her 'it was okay if you don't understand the way humans act', because not even themselves ever truly knew why humans behave the way they do. It's just how they are.

She could tell it was healthy and well looked after. It wasn't wilted at all and its petals almost glowed. It was the most buetifulest thing that she had seen in a long time.

There was no water or soil so how was it that it was here? She moved her hand to the base of the flower to see how the plant worked and how it was that it had grown in seemingly nothing.

As soon as she touched it she became completely startled. Not by the sunflower, no, but she became startled by her own self. Her hands, they were not normal... Because they were normal..?

Her hands weren't made of hardened cold metal, they were made of flesh and they were warm. She raised these hands to the side of her head to find that where her gears once sat were no longer present. She felt the need to gasp for oxygen something that she had never needed to do before ,though she knew that even in this state she did not need it.

The light, this flower and her seemingly human form: Did this mean that she was dead?

But then did machinery go to heaven? It made her think for a bit but then she thought about something Mitsuru and her friends used to tell her back when they had first met 'anything that had a persona was proof that they were human no matter what it may be', it didn't matter if they were a dog or a shadow or even a robot. She was made from a fragment of Nyx's wing but that small fragment grew into a soul.

What was she supposed to do now though if she was dead? All of her friends... She had left them alone to fight... _Something_. Where where her friends? They relied on her and she had left them. She was supposed to protect them and yet she had gone and left them... What if they were already dead... Wasn't the world supposed to be destroyed soon... Or had it already ended..?

She slowly slumped her head and locks of her hair covered her face as she thought about her friends, how she most likely failed them. She hated being so weak.

She sat there for a while before eventually moving her right hand to brush away the blonde hair and as she did she noticed something that sat a little further beyond the yellow flower.

It was a small blade of grass. Even though it was small it seemed larger to her. She walked slowly on her knees and lent over to inspect it like she had with the flower. As she hovered over it she soon saw more green blades.

One blade became two and two became a few, and these few became more. She rose to her feet and curiously followed the charming green path. She noticed as she was walking that her feet too were human in nature and she was barefoot but only noticed when she felt how it was to walk on this grass and how the blades dug into her soles. It didn't hurt much at all like she had thought, in fact it felt almost nice, it was much nicer than she would have imagined the feeling to be.

As she travelled along the green carpet of grass it wasn't long at all before she came across another little yellow flower. It was just as pretty as the previous one and from there she found more yellow sunflowers except for this time they were slightly taller. It wasn't long before she found herself in a field of tall sunflowers that reacted slightly above her head. 

And then she heard sound.

It was the chittering of birds and she could almost feel the sound of wings flapping in the sky and so she looked up. She hadn't realised when but the view above her had turned into a sunny sky complete with a few scarce but soft pale clouds and birds of all colours flew in the sky leaving feathers in their wake. She couldn't help but smile at this beautiful garden.

Then she didn't know where to go next as the trail of grass was now lost in the towering stems. But then did it matter if she lost herself in this field, it was nice so why was there a reason for her to leave?

There wasn't but when she had stayed there and looked at the birds for a long time a familiar butterfly had drawn her from her thoughts. It had fluttered for a few moments on a stem close to her for a few moments before taking back off and even though it couldn't talk she had felt that it wanted her to follow it in the back of her mind.

Just like everything else she had seen she had followed it wherever it wanted to take her. She took twists and turns manoeuvring though the the flowers like a maze and eventually she had quickened her pace when she thought she had lost sight of the butterfly. She and the butterfly had emerged into a clearing, the flowers much less dense. 

It looked like a well-kept garden in the centre of the clearing and following the butterfly she walked through many of thin white archways of thinly welded metal. Though it was a small stone birdbath and a white, wooden bench and a few scattered holes in the ground along with a garden shovel and bags of compost from someone who was most likely tending the sunflowers.

Before she took another step her line vision was blocked by a swam of familiar blue velvet butterflies. She had to hold herself back in order not to flinch when some got too close to her face. 

The butterflies had eventually spread out into the neighbouring flowers and she was able to see again more clearly. 

There on the bench was someone sitting with a large straw hat and a colourful T-shirt. She guessed they were the gardener of this place. She wasn't sure if the other knew of her presence but when she got close enough to them they didn't flinch but instead raised the large straw hat that had obscured their face.

...It was him.

This time she couldn't hold herself back and raised a hand to her mouth. He looked at her pleasantly and smiled. She should be feeling sad especially at this point, her head yells it but her heart just doesn't cooperate. Instead she feels something she has yet to describe. It would be daring to say it was relief or maybe it could be described as satisfaction or fullness, but she does however feel almost happy in her own odd way.

She takes a seat beside him and stares at him in almost shock and surprise in a welcoming silence. Eventually though she couldn't help but break the silence between the two of them to satisfy her own curiosity.

"...You're really here aren't you?"

He looked at her for a moment before giving her a small nod, but she was willing not to talk about its possibilities out of fear.

"It really is quite nice here. It's almost... Like a paradise.

May I ask where 'here' is exactly."

He looks a slightly less happy but far from sad. The answer he gives her sounds almost well-rehearsed. "Here. I guess you could call it in a way a 'heaven before a heaven' or something similar I guess. If you want to know exactly, this is inside the seal."

Her eyes widen in confusion. "How is that even possible..? Y-your seal... It was made in Taurus, it was supposed to an inpenadrable barrier. Nothing, nothing should be able to enter the seal. " She said almost desperately, her voice raising slightly. It didn't make any sense, was she only hearing what she wanted to hear.

He gave her a brief moment to calm down before replying. "That is true, but you are forgetting something. All living things are connected to the sea of souls; that also means that I am not exempt. "

She opened her mouth but he cut her off(,something in which he rarely does). "It's okay. You do not need to worry, nothing can enter here what I don't will. She cannot enter here and so you do not need to worry about her."

She wants to tell him though that nothing is alright, her friends are somewhere out there fighting and she is not and the world was going to end soon if it hadn't already. How was anything okay..?

She moved her head slightly and yet those knowing grey eyes manage to meet her's even though she was sure she had turned her head away to avoid his gaze. She's always been drawn to him.

She scans the blue-haired boy over and she notices how he's wearing sandals, she also notices how he looked better than he had ever been before February.

February... That was right, he had died in March. It had been years since she had seen him last.

He most have noticed her getting more sadder and so shuffled closer to her copying her same actions earlier.

"The world is not over and your friends are still alive, though they are struggling without you. "

She feels slightly lighter but soon shakes her head. "I'm glad to hear it, but I'm- I'm dead. There's nothing more I can do. "

"No, you are not dead but that is only the case if you do not return. Right now you are only unconscious in the real world. Time does not fun function here as it does with yours."

His response causes her to frown. "Why am I here though if I'm only just asleep; Why am I here?"

He doesn't say anything for awhile: he only looks at the butterflies and the surrounding sunflowers around them. After several moments he says something to her again but does not turn his head back to face her. "I guess it would be because your resolve requires to be renewed or more simply you need to clear your mind of frustration and regret. 'Even a blind woman can tell when she's walking in the sun', but a blinded mind can't. Your letting it control you, you remember when that happened.

I brought you here I guess because I wanted to show you this garden."

She could tell he had put a lot of effort into this garden and she was glad that he had brought her here. She had her hands together in habit realising how strange they felt and soon her gaze travelled to Minato's. She placed one of her hands down on the wooden bench. For some reason her mind was filled with the desire to touch his own hand, a desire that had long been buried in the back of her mind. He didn't even have to look down but yet he knew exactly what she was thinking about and placed his hand on top of hers.

He sat there stunned for a bit nearly letting out a tepid gasp. In response however she entwined her fingers with his. 

"If that is the case then may I do this." She said not really in the form of a question but more of a statement than anything.

"Of course."

They sat there for awhile her human hand together with his. With her mechanical hands she was never really able to experience the heat of a human body in the way that another biological being does, it was one of the few small things she was jealous of that humans had that she could not acquire. Eventually at some point her head had found his shoulder and he had not cared to mind the intrusion.

Time didnt really work here. For all she could know she could have been there for a thousand years.

But eventually no matter how satisfied and content she was there was anpther part of her that called out to a place far more distant than here and she knew exactly what it was.

"I see your heart is calling out to them. It's time you return back to them. "

Her heart saddened at the thought of leaving him again, she wanted nothing more to say by his side forever but she could not resist her calling. Though it hurt far less significantly than the first time he had left her. It was an almost calming thought though. If she had to leave him this would no doubtably be the best place to leave him.

She wanted to say goodbye but in her mind that always signified something permanent and yet a 'see you later ' seemed too weak hearted. Instead she have him her warmest smile and lent her head on the back rest of the bench and closed her eyes as she let her heart be carried back to her friends.

.

.

.

Her metal sole scraped along the ground as she pulled herself to her feet.

She was right: They had fought harder things before.


End file.
